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The Pentagon’s Newest Medal Rewards Excellence in Drone Combat

Called the Distinguished Warfare Medal, this award will honor drone pilots, hackers and others

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Ockham Never Really Had a Razor

Ockham never really said anything about razors; he was more interested in Scripture

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Why Have So Many of Tibet’s Monks Set Themselves on Fire?

More than 100 Tibetan monks have set themselves aflame in the past four years

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We’re Biased Towards Our Own Relationship Status And Push It Onto Our Friends

People, whether single or partnered up, tend to think their way of romantic life is better for everyone, regardless of how happy they actually are

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Why Football Players Get Away With Everything, Even Doping

The people of the world have spoken: they don’t like cheaters, and they don’t like doping. Unless you’re a football player - in which case no one seems to care

Neuroscientists Have Created Mice That Can’t Sense Cold

The end goal is to help develop drugs that more thoroughly knock out the feeling of pain

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Not Only Can Plants Talk to Each Other, They Listen More Closely to Their Relatives

Plants speak with chemical cues, and they listen more carefully to their close relatives

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Real-Life Turkish Vampire Now Cured

A man just recovered from a condition his doctor called “clinical vampirism”—which was characterized by insatiable cravings for human blood

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In the Middle East, Supplies of Fresh Water Are Dwindling

A 2007 drought, and an over-reliance on groundwater, means the the Middle East’s aquifers are fading

An electron micrograph of the coronavirus.

New SARS-Like Virus Is Spreading—Slowly

A novel coronavirus identified earlier this year is slowly—very slowly—spreading

Mistreated Robots Now Have a Advocacy Group

Someday, the Seattle-based American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Robots may begin to serve disgruntled, nonhuman customers of the AI persuasion

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Should National Parks Offer Wifi and Cellular Coverage?

Is cellular coverage inevitable in U.S. national parks, some of the nation’s last wireless hold-outs?

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A Restaurant in Japan Is Serving a $110 Tasting Menu Featuring Dirt

Japan’s foodies have turned their attention to a new delicacy on Tokyo menus; will dirt turn up next in haute cuisine in New York and London?

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The Saltiest Pond on Earth Could Explain How Bodies of Water Form on Mars

At 40 percent salinity, the pond is the saltiest body of water on the planet.

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When Building New Power Plants, Wind Can Be Cheaper Than Coal

In Australia, wind power is now cheaper than coal

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Tourists’ Photos Could Help Scientists Understand Whale Sharks

Every year, tourists take approximately a bazillion pictures. Most of them never wind up anywhere but someone’s hard drive, never seen again, but some of those pictures might actually be useful. Especially if they’re of whale sharks

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How Much Damage Could North Korea’s New Nuke Do?

North Korea’s new nuke could take out a big chunk of Lower Manhattan

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To Measure the Taste of Food, Listen to Your Taste Buds

What does the taste of coffee actually sound like?

Fifty Years After Sylvia Plath’s Death, Critics Are Just Starting to Understand Her Life

Cultural fascination with the author and poet continues to burn brightly despite - or perhaps because of - Plath’s premature departure from this world

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Elephants Choose to Stay Inside Safe, Less Stressful National Parks

Elephants living within the park’s boundaries are significantly less stressed than those living outside of its protective borders

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